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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26396026">let them bleed</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/serpentineshadows/pseuds/serpentineshadows'>serpentineshadows</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Fire Emblem: Soen no Kiseki/Akatsuki no Megami | Fire Emblem Path of Radiance/Radiant Dawn</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Ambiguous/Open Ending, Drabble, Gen, Not Canon Compliant, but uh personally i believe ike &amp; soren go do pt4 of the game just by themselves, can be viewed as slash or gen, hand holding, i was just feeling some apocalyptic vibes so i cooked this up real quick</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 10:27:27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>653</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26396026</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/serpentineshadows/pseuds/serpentineshadows</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The malady seems to have skipped over Ike and Soren, but everywhere around them, statues stretch for as far as the eye can see: laguz and beorc alike.</p><p>-</p><p><em>From Pain, Awakening</em> ends a little differently.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Ike &amp; Senerio | Soren</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>7</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>18</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>let them bleed</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>might be some inaccuracies related to what happens in-game cause it has been a hot minute since i played radiant dawn. i did try my best to skim the wiki tho</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Much as he loathes it, Ike’s hands are made for killing.</p><p>The din of battle echoes all around them, but Ike only has eyes for his end goal. Enemy soldiers drop like puppets, their strings severed, dotting the path he cuts toward Micaiah and the other leaders of the Daein army.</p><p>“Surrender!” he shouts. The priestess, clutching her tome, is looking right at him. Despite the countless laguz on his side, the enemy has decided Ike, their fellow beorc, is the most dangerous threat. “Surrender, and no one else will be harmed!”</p><p>Another soldier, two, three more fall by his hand. Still, Micaiah does not waver, and neither do the royal laguz standing beside her.</p><p>Ike clashes with Sothe once he ventures close enough. Blood cakes Ike’s sword; the wall of loyal Daien soldiers has kept Sothe’s knife clean.</p><p>“Sorry, General Ike,” Sothe grunts, struggling against the might of Ike’s blow. A momentary distraction, but it’s enough. Soren has always been swift and eagle-eyed. Unlike Ike, he doesn’t have the naivety to hesitate against a former ally.</p><p>Ice shatters against Sothe’s chest, Soren’s Rexcalibur striking true. The heavy winds rip open Sothe’s wounds further. His blood splatters against Ike’s cheek.</p><p>Micaiah’s cry rings in Ike’s ears. She rushes forward, shaken, and Soren takes aim again.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The sky bleeds.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The battlefield is eerily quiet.</p><p>In front of Ike, Sothe and Micaiah are statues frozen in terror and pain.</p><p>“It’s the goddess,” someone cries. “The goddess has cast her judgement upon—” Ike has heard people choke on their own blood before, but this is something else—being cut off mid-sentence because you’ve been turned to stone.</p><p>The malady seems to have skipped over Ike and Soren, but everywhere around them, statues stretch for as far as the eye can see: laguz and beorc alike.</p><p>“<em>Mist,</em>” Ike gasps and takes off running. Soren is quick to follow.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>He finds her back to back with Boyd, both of them frozen.  His sister is <em> stone, </em> and there is no explanation for it. And no explanation means a cure is unlikely. Ike’s hand hovers above her cheek, afraid to touch her lest she break.</p><p>“Ike.” Soren snaps Ike out of his daze.</p><p>Ike turns to Soren. “What’s happening? Why is everyone—”</p><p>“We need to see if there are others,” Soren says, steady as usual. He always seems to have all the answers, but Ike knows he must be shaken as well. </p><p>Ike grabs Soren’s free hand, and he protests very little, for once. No one is around to see, after all.</p><p>“Yeah, good idea.”</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>They meander throughout the entire battlefield, and even the fortress, but they don’t encounter a single living thing.</p><p>“Scary,” Ike remarks, as they stare right at Ranulf’s still form, the snarl carved into his face.</p><p>Soren squeezes his hand.</p><p>“What, what should we do? How can we turn everyone back?”</p><p>Soren does not say, <em> how should I know? </em> He does not say, <em> something like this has never happened before. </em> Instead: “something like this must be the work of the goddess.”</p><p>“Right,” Ike says, waiting for Soren to say more.</p><p>“I suppose we’ll have to take our disagreements to her.”</p><p>“Of course,” Ike says. He doesn’t mention how Soren’s hands are shaking.</p><p>They look over the field of statues, the blood-red sky painting a macabre image, and in the direction of Begnion, where the sound of steady marching is coming from. It’s deafening in what is otherwise complete silence.</p><p>“To Begnion, then?” Ike asks, even as they rush towards the oncoming army.</p><p>Soren lifts their intertwined fingers, and for a moment, Ike thinks he’s letting go—but no, he lands the first strike against the white-clad soldiers, cutting a swath through their ranks.</p><p>“We are the chosen ones, blessed by the goddess,” the enemy yells, unbothered by their loss.</p><p>“To Begnion,” Soren confirms, his soft voice a death knell for all those standing in their way. </p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>i have been in a fe3h mood recently, but when i was struck by apocalyptic vibes idea, my brain went straight to radiant dawn<br/>(does anyone still read fe10 fic in 2020??? if so, i appreciate you, thank you for reading)</p></blockquote></div></div>
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